People will have opinions, people will be attached to things and be disappointed when there are changes, bit this game is the perfect instance of a live service, because everything is in flux, even the community. It's highly dynamic and if you take a step back for a moment to just appreciate this community being dynamic, then perhaps some people can look on this whole thing a bit more positively.
You know the saying, people criticise what they love. And sometimes people will be emotional and use rhetoric which others feel may go to far.
What people need to realise is that the reason why the Helldivers 2 community loves to complain after the controversy is because so many members of the community have been taught by this a lesson in collective power. Hence people believe that they can complain into making the game better and they will continue to do so.
If you want a case study in social science, this is a great great example to explore, and I bet some researchers have already have their eyes peeling over the Helldivers 2 controversy and the aftermath. I said this in the post I made here before on the last day before Sony conceded to the main demand but not the secondary demand.
People feel emboldened and the honeymoon has officially ended at the same time. The result this has on the community is the illusion is shattered by some of the worst of human instincts, but combated by some of the best.
Because of the secondary demand not being met, many in the community who believed it the more important issue (PSN access in the global south) are being forced to confront their own perceptions and seeing how these tendencies may run deeper than this game's community itself.
I would like to see more community social commentary posts like my own, and I would love to see more people understand the depth of this games social commentary itself. Feel free to insert accusations of me being a bug or robot sympathiser.
Cyberstan was literally minding it's own business, and it got taken over and the cyberstan people were forced to submit to the demands of Super Earth. This is a reference to the banana republics, unequal treaties, and colonialism. Meanwhile the bugs were peaceful until Super Earth took over their worlds and stwrted farming them for oil, I imagine this is more a commentary on the way the west has treated the middle east.
Now let me ask you this... What if you line up the PSN access map with the Human development index, and then line it up with the scramble for Africa map, and also the partition of the Ottoman Empire after WW1. You notice anything interesting? The reason PSN doesn't exist in these countries is an indirect result of what Super Earth did to Cyberstan. Well not exactly it was not Super Earth but the whole point is Cyberstan is a metaphor, so are the bugs.
We can all be annoyed at Sony, and that's totally okay, but the reason Sony doesn't provide PSN access in these countries is due to the historical and infrastructural legacy of colonialism and imperialism. The Automaton's are merely a reaction to the former, like the anti-apartied and anti-colonial movements. Super Earth sanitises it's role much like how the British, French, Dutch, Portuguese, Spanish, and Americans have in the past and do today to a lesser extent. If you don't believe that Super Earth's behaviour would be allowed to happen in our world you are already wrong. See Operation Legacy for instance, a program initiated by the British in order to preserve or secure their legacy as a "progressive" colonial power, this included the mass burning of documents which documented various crimes against humanity such as concentration camps, massacres, and well... It goes on.
It's not an easy subject to approach and the reality of the modern world is already highly confrontational to all of us, it's not pretty and the satire of Helldivers 2 potrays what it's like to live on the beneficiary side of the equation. Should you feel guilty for your role in history? Only if you directly participate in injustice, and that's why the propaganda of our societies does so very much to try and protect these direct contributors because these direct contributors are indeed keeping our global economy the way it is. But we are all involved, and ultimately the direct contributors are fooled into this as well. This is a global problem, and because of years of direct contributors we in the global north indirectly benefit from what happens in the global south. This doesn't mean we should guilt ourselves for this, because after all you are a citizen of this Super Earth, it's not your fault that you didn't know any better, your agency is also impaired by the fact that ethical consumerism is itself propaganda.
The question we should be asking ourselves, is what we should do with our agency with the agency we have to affect the outcomes of this. Ask not what Earth can do for you, ask what you can do for Earth. If you want to see a brighter future for our Earth, what will you do with your agency to help those less fortunate than you?
I am not going to tell you how, because thwre a thousands of beliefs and thousands of ways you can make the world a better place, you aren't needed in the Congo, you are needed in your community, in your environment, in your country. People in other countries have agency over their actions within the limitations of their circumstances, yoy cannot judge them for being unable to solve a problem which has persisted for centuries, neither should you. But the most important question to ask is... Are you doing your part?
Helldivers, you know that change comes from numbers, not from single actions, but without single actions there would be no masses.
For our own sanity in this increasingly confusing, alienating world with sharpening contradicting social forces... You can either choose to isolate yourself from it, or make the world a better place. I have tried to do this in my own life, and this gives me meaning and has helped me achieve self-actualisation. I ak proud of my effort, even if it's only a small part of a bigger whole.
Cleansing the world of the legacy of colonialism and imperialism... WILL make PSN available everywhere. Direct actions have indirect consequences.
I will show my personal bias in my final sentance but it holds true regardless of time.
Educate, Agitate, Organise. Be the change you wish to see, and you will inspire others to follow.

Semi serious, so don't go too hard on me. I just listened to a video of someone playing and I'm convinced I could never be depressed or anxious if I could make them noises.
I'm scared to look it up because then I might find out how expensive they are and all my dreams will be shattered

I hate how I look so much that I haven't seriously dated in a long time and, at nearly 47, have never had a serious relationship.
I hate being big and bald. I'm 6'3". I started losing my hair at 16. I'm about 275 so I can definitely lose weight but I will always be big because of my height and build.
I hate being "stuck" this way. I can't tell you what I do to deal with it because it probably violates some rule here. I know that I can't "fix" my height and while I can definitely get in shape, I still have to deal with the fact that I will never be small or even average. And that people WILL make rude comments about me looking like a bouncer or a football player because of things I can't help like my stature and hair loss, plus I'll have to pretend that what to me confirms I'm unattractive is a compliment I enjoy getting.
I get insanely jealous when I read about people of average height who lose a bunch of weight and go from being big and ridiculed to slim and admired. Then I get angry because people always say I'm supposed to like being big and enjoy being stereotyped because there are skinny guys out there who wish they could put on weight.
I just feel disgusted being big, and not just fat. I hate that I take up more space than other people. That when I HAVE dated, I'd often end up with women who'd fetishize it, telling me they loved how small they felt compared to me. That I will always weigh more than other people...that 200 or even 220 lbs would be an ok weight for me but embarrassingly obese for anyone else.

I would say I’ve come very far on my journey and I don’t feel nearly as bad about myself anymore, but something that every time without fail causes me to regress and get momentarily extremely insecure and upset is when someone I know loses a large amount of weight and looks as thin as or even thinner than me.
I know this makes me seem like a bit of a bad person but with my warped perspective I see people who are larger or societally deemed as less attractive as “safe people,” as in I don’t have to be riddled with anxious thoughts about how i’m being perceived because I know they won’t judge me. When someone I know loses weight it makes me feel simultaneously jealous and like I’m a failure for not being able to drop below bmi 23, and also like they’re noticing how they’re smaller than me and that I’m “the big one” now. I hate the feeling that suddenly i might be inferior to them looks-wise.
It kinda makes me feel like a bad person for viewing my friends that way and I most certainly don’t want to, but it is hard to ignore when i get very insecure at a social function because a friend i haven’t seen in a few months now looks 10 pounds thinner than me. I was wondering if this is a shared experience because I’m noticing a pattern lately in my reactions to weight loss in my friends.

a few months ago i was in a mental hospital. we had a tv that we could watch youtube on sometimes in the evening when we weren’t doing programs. ive been a huge fan of fiw since i was in elementary school, and one day i put “it’ll be okay” on the tv to show everyone because i remembered it existed. one of the staff, named Trevor, told me to shut it off and said he was “friends with jenny long enough to know that it wasn’t appropriate”. i was immediately floored and asked him wtf he was talking about. he nonchalantly revealed he had been friends with jenny for like.. years???? i was shocked. honestly i shouldnt have been too shocked since trevor knew a lot of other people. he was also friends with dan avidan, and had even edited videos for matpat. he has worked tech at cons before and spent a day with tara strong once. also, the infamous dr weebl song, magical trevor? ALSO ABOUT HIM. nonetheless i was still so surprised about how many people he knew. anyways the next day we decided to watch equestria girls (peak) and he apparently messaged jenny telling her about it, because jenny had tried to get him to watch it. he came to me the next day and told me that i had made jenny, one of my favorite creators of video essays, happy 🥲. i have been holding that in my heart for months. he honestly saved my life. i remember multiple times where i was at my lowest and felt so trapped, and he knew some reference to make me feel better. i have been out for three months and am doing much better, but i just want to thank jenny, youtube and internet culture, and trevor, for everything. i think about him every day. we shared so many of the same interests and he was like a weird uncle to me lol.

My husband is a big people pleaser and has a hard time setting boundaries. Conversely, he also has a hard time respecting boundaries. Ive been to therapy enough times that I can recognize how manipulative many of his friendships are. He seems to attract these people like a magnet. He has one friend that is an alcoholic, and the friend is chill when he’s sober. When the friend is drunk, he calls my husband cursing him out. Even at his best he’s a bit of an emotional parasite, demanding large amounts of time(4+ hours phone calls every night, dinner once a week, etc) and if my husband doesn’t give in this “friend” gets upset and insists my husbands never had his back. Being a people pleaser with weak boundaries, my husband will go to great lengths to avoid this. He often goes to out eat or hang out with this guy(as well as other people who are just as bad) even though he doesn’t want to. I tell him he shouldn’t feel pressured, he needs to set boundaries with these guys that when he says no he’s not going. But he just can’t seem to bring himself to do it. I figure I can’t force him, but at least I don’t have to associate with them, besides being respectful for my husband’s sake should I ever run into one in public. But sometimes my husband tells them I’ll come too. When he asks me, I’ve always said no. I’ve been very clear on my no. He then proceeds to tell me that he’s already told them I’m coming and he’ll look “like a liar” if I don’t show up. It’s irritating and draining to hand out with these people and puts us both in a bad mood. Last time he did this, I told him I wouldn’t be going next time. If I say no, I mean it. He said he understood. Well, today his friend wanted to go to Olive Garden. I said very clearly to my husband multiple times I wasn’t going. I didn’t want to go, I was tired, I don’t like this guy, etc. he has the guy on mute at this point. After I finish explaining that I won’t be going, my husband turns off mute and tells the guy that we’ll both be there to pick him up in half an hour. I couldn’t believe it!! But I’m not a pushover, so I told him I still wasn’t going. It led to a big fight, him saying I was embarrassing him and that it was my fault he was stuck going. He even tried demanding I go, telling me to “get dressed right now and fix your attitude” but I held my ground. Finally he just left, but not after mentioning how his night was ruined and it’s all my fault. I’m so frustrated, I thought I was doing the right thing by being calm and clear, but his frustration is making me doubt. Was there a better way to go about this? Should I have caved and gone with him? Could I have communicated better?

I just finished Oathbringer and am fully invested in figuring out all of the intricate details of this series that has quickly become my new obsession. I’ve loved diving into the lore and seeing how our characters have been handling growing through their serious brokenness. Just wanted to post a lot of my thoughts, ideas, and questions here. Please let me know if any of these can be answered with information through OB. Otherwise, I’m sure most of this is RAFO and I’ll see as I jump right into Dawnshard and RoW!
Radiance

• Will Kaladin even say more of the Windrunner Ideals? There is something weird going on with the Radiants and why they decided to break their oaths at the Recreance and I don’t think we have the full story yet. Perhaps we don’t need our main characters to finish all of the Ideals? Not sure.
• I’m thinking that the 4th Windrunner Ideal might be something along the lines of “I accept that I can not protect everyone” and Kal must learn to live with the fact that sometimes he will fail and it will be very hard for him.
• What is our count on number of Ideals sworn by Shallan? Shallan’s are, of course, the truths that she tells to Pattern and those include the murders of each of her parents as we found in WoR. But what more could she say? There is still a lot of mystery with her family and their ties to the Ghostbloods, especially the mother and Helaran.
• Let’s get Shallan soulcasting more! She’s been way out of practice on that end.
• What about Dalinar’s Ideals? Dalinar becoming Unity seemed to be the second of his Ideals as the Stormfather accepted his words during the Battle for Thaylen City. I’m interested to see more of his development as a Radiant. It seems that the Bondsmiths are particularly important and I want to know more about each of the three of them and what their specific roles are. Will we see the other two appear as the series goes on?
• I’m glad Dalinar learns to read and write, it’s about time we give up some of those old-fashioned Vorin ideas. I was kinda hoping his Bondsmith powers would let him learn immediately in the same way he learns other languages by touching someone who speaks it, but oh well.
• I do not think we’ve seen much of the Surges of Cohesion and Tension (Stoneward territory) and I’d love to learn more about what they are, how they work, how different Radiants manifest powers through them. The Ars Arcanum descriptions of them are vague and mysterious. Dalinar can gain the power of Tension through being a Bondsmith, but I’m not sure if we’ve seen that explicitly yet?
• Just how powerful was Dalinar’s Unity stand? Odium retreated immediately after the conjunction of the three realms. Was Odium’s claim of (paraphrase) “I though we killed you” referring to Honor, or perhaps something different? Is this one of Dalinar’s powers now, i.e., will he be able to regenerate Stormlight at his will? It seems so since he reloaded Kaladin before he flew off to recover Skar, Drehy, and co., but it seemed to be quite taxing on him.
• Man I just want to know all about the different powers that Surgebinders carry. There are 10 surges total, and if each Order of the KR can access 2, then there are 10!/(8!2!) = 45 unique combinations of two surges… too bad there are only 10 orders instead of 45 to match all combinations :( Might have been an undertaking for Brandon to create all of these orders.
• It’s been hinted that upper-level Ideals must be sworn for Radiants to get Shardplate? Maybe we’ll see that happen in RoW.
• Of course Malata is siding with some antagonists. Fits the trope that fire/destruction powers = evil. Bummer. Maybe someone else will come up who can use this power for good.
• Renarin’s bond is interesting to me. His spren is either corrupted or simply one of the Voidspren, but he still seems to maintain good intentions as a character. I’m interested to see what happens with him. Maybe not all Voidspren have to side with Odium/the Fused. He is also mentioned (secretly to Odium) in the Diagram, so he’ll obviously play an important role.
• Similarly, I’m interested in Venli’s role. Seems like she recognizes that things are off with the Voidspren and Odium. Is her spren Timbre a lightspren? Willshaper Venli? Her ties to Odium, the Listeners, the Fused, etc. will be interesting after having said the First Ideal. Especially with the Voidspren that is in her gemheart.
• Jasnah clearly is very powerful (as shown at the Battle for Thaylen City) and it was an interesting choice to make her queen. I’d have figured she would want to devote her time to her scholarly work rather than dealing in politics, but we’ll see how it goes I guess. Might be hard to find time to mentor Shallan on Soulcasting too.
• Man we gotta find a way for Lift to either take in Stormlight in the normal way or to just get her a huge duffel bag full of food all the time, especially during battles.

Gods, Heralds, all things of power:

• What are the different “levels” of power that each of the gods possess? Honor has obviously been killed, but I get the sense that he might still be able to “come back” through DalinaStormfather? I don’t know. These gods can be killed I guess, so not quite true God-gods, just some supremely powerful beings.
• What are the motivations of these different gods (Odium, Cultivation, pre-death Honor, others)? It’s hard to get a reading on why Odium wants to be so involved with the Singers’/Listeners’ return instead of just existing as a god somewhere. I know he’s trapped somehow, hence the barter with Dalinar, but like why does he cause so much mischief in the first place? Just his nature I guess?
• Wit has got to be up here with this crew of gods, no?
• Who is Rayse? We hear about him through the letters exchanged with Wit in the epigraphs, but still so mysterious. Again, what are these higher-beings’ motivations? Perhaps his role is clearer by reading some of BS’s other books prior to the SA?
• I do believe that Adonalsium is the true OG God, and he somehow split into “Shards” that might be these other gods known as Honor, Odium, Cultivation, etc., but that is surmised through some reading online. Not sure exactly where that information has come out and what I need to read for better background on this. How did the Shattering occur? Why did the Shards gain sentience? Why do they have different personalities and motivations?
• This Voidlight is mysterious still. How is it different in nature to normal Stormlight? Can Knights Radiant take it in the same way? Can the Fused take in regular Stormlight? I don’t think it’s been explicitly stated, but this must be what was in the sphere that Gavilar gave the Szeth on the night of the assassination. Also is that sphere the same thing Navani hinted at when Dalinar showed her the Nergaoul-infused King’s Drop?
• I’m interested to find out why are Honorspren looked down upon in Shadesmar at the moment.
• Szeth’s blade Nightblood is very different — talks to him, needs to be sheathed instead of vanishing, has a very skewed sense of time, drains color. People on Reddit have recalled this blade from Warbreaker, which I have not read yet, and thus already know about it, Vivenna/Azure, and Zahel, among others.
• I am hoping that the Heralds are able to make somewhat of a recovery from their insanity and we can see them in power. Too bad Jezrien has been killed. I was looking forward to his return in particular. Nale is… coming around? We got a few glimpses of Ash in Oathbringer, and I realized she is the same character as the woman destroying paintings in the WoK interlude. Taln is so noble… was not even mad about holding the gates for 4.5 thousand years, just happy to have given humans the time to develop. Taravangian hinted that Dova in Kharbranth is Battar. Seems like Ishar will come into play given all his mentions in Oathbringer. Haven’t heard much (or don’t remember) much of the others (Kalak, Pailiah, Vedel, and Chanarach), but hopefully they show themselves soon!
• Ok, so the secret came out that the humans are the Voidbringers and came from another planet that they destroyed and caused a lot of problems here on Roshar. The timeline for this is confusing to me. If the humans are the invasive species, then why were the Heralds created in the first place? It’s my understanding that the Heralds (or all of the ones we’ve seen so far) are human. The old story says (or implies) that the Heralds were created to bring an end to the Desolations. So does that mean that the humans invaded, then Honor gave a handful of them additional powers (Surges) to help exterminate the Singers and the other Rosharan inhabitants? And then, of course, the formation of the Knights Radiant. When did they come about? Did the Heralds fight for a few hundreds/thousands of years before the KR were formed or were they around earlier? I’m missing the motivations of the gods here… why would Honor create these powerful beings to help invade a new planet? Not very honorable if you ask me. What kinds of powers did the early Listeners have that required the use of Surgebinding to defeat? How do the Voidspren and Fused play into this? Are they native Roshar spren that are just angry at being taken over by humans with their bonds to other higher spren? Something is fishy with the relationship between the Listeners and the Voidspren — they banished them at risk of being enslaved for thousands of years. Most of the Listeners are rightfully angry at the humans for millennia of enslavement, but very few actually want to kill the humans. Rather, they seem content to just cohabit Roshar. I am hoping for further clarification in RoW.
• The Unmade are so fascinating to me. They are described as being of Odium, but do not necessarily want to remain tied to him, some of them having minds of their own, fueled by the specific Passions relevant to them. Interesting how these powerful spren will continue to influence Roshar. Also being made, then unmade?? What’s that all about?
• Cultivation is being foreshadowed a lot and I am wondering what her influence will be in the coming books. She had the interaction with Dalinar in his flashback, but they talk about her so much more than just referring to this one instance. The Nightwatcher’s powers (with the boons/curses) are still so interesting to me too.
• Have we seen Odium’s analog to the NightwatcheStormfather? I’m assuming that if Cultivation and Honor have these more-powerful spren, then so will he. Maybe you could consider the Unmade to satisfy this role?

Secret Organizations:

• Ghostbloods — I feel like we’ll get a lot of info. on these guys soon. We know somewhat little about them. Members include Mraize and Iyatil, both mysterious, and members of House Davar. They are good at finding Honorblades and Heralds. Lots and lots of secrets. They’re gonna keep on manipulating Shallan it seems… hopefully she can maintain an upper edge.
• The Diagram — I am inclined to think that the Diagram may be right, but I am hoping that it’s flawed. Interesting that there were parts of the Diagram that even Odium couldn’t see (Renarin’s name). Seems they have good intentions, but are ultimately perilous to our protagonists through their means to save Roshar and, thus, are “bad guys”. I seems to me that Taravangian just wants what’s best for Roshar, and it’s too bad his one day of genius has painted all of our main characters as roadblocks/liabilities/etc. Always so sneaky, Taravangian, but also very interesting. I hope he has another day of brilliance, I loved reading the day on Urithiru where he was quite intelligent (still not the same as the Diagram day, of course).
• Sons of Honor — my least favorite of the secrete organizations tbh. Glad Amaram is dead after being infused by the Unmade (can’t remember which one. Yelig-Nar maybe?). Amaram seemed to have met with Odium prior to the battle for Thaylen City though… is that consistent with the SoH or did he break off from the group to do this? Other members of SoH that we know of so far?

Bridge Four:

• The connection between squires and radiants is still kinda vague to me. What are the requirements for these squires to become full Radiants, if at all?
• I think Rock may be my favorite B4 member, so earnest and kind, doesn’t want to hurt anyone. And a good cook. I’d like to know more about his past, his family, really all about the Horneaters. I could tell right away that he’d be pretty distraught over having to take the Amaram kill shot.
• Love Skar and Drehy’s connection with Adolin.
• Teft has gotta figure out his firemoss shit
• How can you not love the Lopen?

Other mysteries and thoughts:

• Aimia — what happened here? What caused its destruction? It’s hinted in Mythica that one of the Unmade, the mysterious Dai-Gonarthis, may have caused the destruction of this country. There are still secrets lying in Akinah as suggested by the Oathbringer interludes that I’d love to discover more about.
• What of the Aimian people? Reading online hints that there are two types, iirc. The only things I remember are of Axies the collector and the Sleepless that Lift encounters in Edgedancer. I remember being thoroughly spooked by him, hordelings crawling around all the time. Perhaps as intended, every time there is mention of cremlings in the main SA series, I think it’s one of the Sleepless keeping an eye on things (Taln’s kidnapping at the end of WoR, e.g.).
• Zahel has a lot to yet reveal in these books. I feel like he’s pretty dang powerful and should have a bigger role in all of this.
• The country of Natanan is somewhat interesting right now too. Still surviving as a city-state over so close to the Origin. How are they doing? I want more on them too.
• There’s some sketchy stuff going on at the Origin too. We’ve got information about that story (from Wit’s story in WoK if I remember correctly) that people may live there and have their own kingdom and whatnot. This place gets hinted at from time to time. Was the Oathbringer interlude about the lighthouse taking place here?
• There’s something going on in the Horneater Peaks. There is a Perpendicularity there, but I feel that can’t be all.
• What’s the deal with the Greatshells? They seem important and… wise? Perhaps some relation to the Chasmfiends (unless they’re classified as Greatshells too? I’m mostly thinking of those that live in/near the Reshi Isles).
• So much of the Cognitive realm/Shadesmar still needs to be explored and understood from our perspective.
• Will the assassin hired by Jasnah on the night of Gavilar’s assassination come into play again? Can’t remember her name rn.
• Speaking of that day… why were the Heralds (Nale and Ash? Any more?) at the party?
• Who is Restares and why did Gavilar think he may have been involved with his murder? Is there some deeper involvement by House Sadeas in the assassination of Gavilar as well?
• We still don’t know the full details of Gavilar’s plan. What was he up to? The Listeners killed him for the desire to bring back their gods (which has proved disastrous), but what else was he getting into? He had clear ties to the Sons of Honor I think.
• Will Adolin be able to revive Maya and perhaps gain some Radiant powers?? I’m rooting for it to happen.
• Man, what’s going on over in the West? Iri and Rira just decided to submit to the Voidspren/Listeners immediately? And Shinovar is going to have an interesting story with it being the first-landing of humans and the storage space for most of the Honorblades for thousands of years.
• Wit found a Pattern at the end of part 5 and mentioned some of the First Ideal (interesting…). He’s always going to be a mystery to me, I fear. But also easily one of the, if not the, best character in the series.

So today I started HRT which is a decision that's been 2 years in the making and while I have always intended to look female and present that way and yet I still can't see myself as truly a woman everytime I think about it I know I'm actually a woman I'm just trying to emulate one I'll never actually be a woman or get the experience I wish I could have had as a woman so much of my life has already been tainted by being born a male where I feel like I can never truly shed that past and see myself as a woman and I honestly don't know how to process this to the point in most cases I still call myself a femboy because it's easier on my dysphoria even despite the fact I'm medically transitioning which is both horribly offensive to both femboys and trans women by identifying this way and I don't know what to do maybe non binary I don't know none of it really makes sense

Believe it or not, there was a time when people actually talked to each other—shocking, especially for the younger generation, right?
But kidding aside, there's a grain of truth in that jest. I'm a firm believer that genuine connections start with meaningful conversations. I'm on the lookout for someone who appreciates the beauty of communication as much as I do.
About Me: I'm the kind of person who finds joy in learning about people from all walks of life. Whether it's through the pages of a book, the scenes of a movie, or engaging in conversation, there's always something to discover about the human condition. I believe in making every moment count.
I've been told I have a knack for turning ordinary conversations into something a bit more exciting. If you enjoy a good laugh, playful banter, and a dash of charm, we might just hit it off.
I'm searching for someone who knows how to keep a conversation interesting. If you appreciate witty banter, love sharing your favourite cheesy jokes, and aren't shy about throwing in a compliment or two, you might be the one I'm looking for.
If you're ready to embark on a communication adventure filled with laughter, curiosity, and a hint of flirtation, send me a message. Let's see where our conversation takes us and if we can make each other's day a little brighter.
About You:
I do have a type. Currently working on my overall fitness journey during bouts of depression (somewhere between fit and dad bod?). I'm looking for a partnesub who is somewhat in shape or thin. Apparently, someone once told me that I have a thing for dark-haired women with big lips—go figure!
A bit about me: I'm pretty open, dark-skinned, 5'7, black hair, brown eyes, working in IT. Feel free to bounce ideas off me to see if there's a match. I enjoy wordplay, encouragement, and, of course, seeing you. Intellectual stimulation is crucial, and effort goes a long way. Currently learning guitar for fun (what a journey!). I'm pretty much an open book.
If any of this resonates with you, don't hesitate to reach out. Pouring yourself out there isn't easy, but to make sure you've read this far, please include your favourite drink or any books you've read lately in your message!

In the zero trust dashboard, by clicking on devices, I can access a warp client's Private warp-to-warp IP address, in the 100.96.x.x range (ipv4).
I'm trying to pull this address from the API. For some reason I get an error that my request can't proceed past /device?[0] in the request URL. I don't have trouble with any other endpoint on the API, so it seems to be some kind of permissions issue? My request looks the same as the one the website makes, the only difference I can think of would be the origin of the request.
It's worth noting this endpoint isn't really documented either, it's under the /teamnet/ path... Seemingly not detailed in any docs I can find.
Any ideas how to get those addresses programmatically? The Warp-to-warp functionality is of limited use with no DNS and no means of automated address discovery.

My document:

\documentclass{article} \usepackage{graphicx} % Required for inserting images \usepackage{forest} \setlength{\parindent}{0pt} \title{Bottom Text Here} \author{person} \date{not available} \begin{document} \maketitle \section*{Question 1} \[Let \quad T(n)=T(n/2)+n^2\] (a) Use a recursion tree to determine a good asymptotic upper bound on the recurrence $T(n)$. \\ \begin{forest} for tree={grow=south, l=2cm} [$cn^2$ [T(n/2) ] ] \end{forest}, \begin{forest} for tree={grow=south, l=2cm} [$cn^2$ [$c(\frac{n}{2})^2$ [T(n/4) ] [T(n/4) ] ] ] \end{forest}, \begin{forest} for tree={grow=south, l=2cm} [$cn^2$ [$c(\frac{n}{2})^2$ [$T(\frac{n}{4})^2$ [T(n/8)] [T(n/8)] ] [$T(\frac{n}{4})^2$ [T(n/8)] [T(n/8)] ] ] ] \end{forest}... \newpage \begin{forest} for tree={grow=south, l=1cm} [$cn^2$ [$c(\frac{n}{2})^2$ [$T(\frac{n}{4})^2$ [T(n/8) [T(n/32)] [T(n/32)] [T(n/32)] [T(n/32)]] [T(n/8) [T(n/32)] [T(n/32)] [T(n/32)] [T(n/32)]] ] [$T(\frac{n}{4})^2$ [T(n/8) [T(n/32)] [T(n/32)] [T(n/32)] [T(n/32)]] [T(n/8) [T(n/32)] [T(n/32)] [T(n/32)] [T(n/32)]] ] ] ] \end{forest} \end{document} 

Looks like this on the 2nd page: https://imgur.com/a/e6u7GvT
I have tried a lot of things. First, \setlength{\parindent}{0pt} doesn't seem to work at all. Second, I tried https://tex.stackexchange.com/questions/337/how-to-change-certain-pages-into-landscape-portrait-mode and it technically worked, but I couldn't get it just nice and centered, plus I need to make something like this: https://imgur.com/a/8GBGinE
and that's not going to be possible if I can't even get the spacing right.
What would be a good resource from this point?

I (F23) have been looking into becoming a hairstylist as it’s something I’ve always wanted to do. I have a degree in marketing which can be really beneficial.
I know with school and starting out the pay isn’t that great but after experience you can make good money. Longterm I would love to specialize in blondes and extensions. My parents are super against it and told me I’d be working for free as an assistant for 3 years before I can get clients.
The owner of the school I toured said it depends on the salon and stuff, but it’s usually 6 months and you’re not unpaid. I can’t find anymore information about this online. When do you become an assistant and how long are you an assistant until you’re an actual stylist?
Also do some salons offer salary and benefits? That’s a huge concern my parents have as they think all stylists make $2 an hour with no insurance or benefits. Any advice/input 😅

Thinking about how alone I actually am despite looking like I have support gives me shivers down my back, when I otherwise feel empty. My mum has had really bad mental health struggles and I do lots of things she used to do to cope: drinking, cutting, stockpiling medication “just in case”, and trying to get away from my own head. She knows how badly I’m currently struggling, or I thought she did, because she says so and I do talk to her about everything, but today I was having a panic attack and stressing badly and she said she didn’t realise how I actually felt, and it makes me a bit paranoid. All these people are saying they are willing to support me and want to look after me, they know how I feel etc etc, but they have no idea. They’re worried from the outside but inside my head it’s so much worse and they never will actually understand. I’ve only had one person tell me they don’t quite understand but they want to do what they can to help. One person is honest in a world full of liars.
I get that I probably sound selfish, ignorant and possibly even spoilt because some people have no one to turn to, but I think it’s just as scary realising that no one can actually help me, even when they say they can. I have horrible thoughts all day, every day, and I want to hurt so badly because I don’t feel worthy of living my shitty life, and I can’t see any way out other than leaving this world. I haven’t experienced much, but it’s probably not meant to be. I have a plan, and I just want my body and mind to be able to rest.

Yesterday I could approach a girl and ask her something, she basically rejected me by showing she's uninterested, i just said thanks and moved on, didn't care about the rejection and actually was proud of my approach.
I then realized that I don't have an anxiety of approaching, I just don't like approaching women while they're walking going places, i need to improve my choice of places, then later i might be able to start approaching women walking somewhere.
Today a friend and I were eating in a restaurant and the waitress is cute, we both liked her, when she came to give us our drinks I told her "you have beautiful eyes", she said thanks, i said "what's your name?" she told me her name then i said nice to meet you and shook her hand.
She seemed receptive, so my friend said how will you take her number? because it was kinda awkward to do that there, it's not really a big place and her cowokers are pretty near. Also i prefer not asking for it in front of my friend because girls dont like when you approach or ask them for such things in front of your friends, it seems like you're just trying to show off your balls in front of your friend, well, at least this is what i believe.
when she was close to the restaurant door i went and called her by her name and said can you please help me and pointed outdoor like im asking for directions, when she got close to understand what im saying and said "what?" i asked for her number, that was smooth and i loooved it, the whole approach just taught me stuff, it's easy to compliment just say beautiful eyes if you have nothing to say, also it's kinda hard to say "you look cute" in my language haha, so i needed something specific.
she doesn't remember it so she literally went outside wrote it in a paper and brought it to me. I was so proud of this approach, i don't even care if things will improve between us, but it just gave me the idea that i actually got it i just need to do more approaches.
I'll try to find better places to do approaches in my city, im exploring these days.

The title might sound a bit silly but just bear with me here lol.
It doesn't matter where you look on the internet, you'll always find the same thing in the comments. The most depressing, fucked up topics will be full of the same jokes, puns, memes, and quotes from the same five comedians and TV shows. How many times do we have to see the same "I also choose this guy's dead wife" joke or another the office reference? It’s not just making the jokes most of the time it’s the way people always feel the need to then one-up someone else’s joke in the lamest way possible. Then you get comment threads full of the least self aware yourjokebutworse material. In every thread.
It’s not just online, obviously. Even when real-life tragedies happen, people can't help but make jokes, no matter how terrible the event (or the jokes being made about it lol) was/are. Like when 9/11 happened, obviously that was tragic and the news was super serious about it, but practically the next day you could tell some people were going, "alright that's enough pretending to care about that, onto the jokes." Hell, south park made an episode about it less than a month later (the entire existence of that show feels like it proves my overall point haha. I mean it’s a good show still). No matter how bad things get, it seems like our first reaction is always to find a way to laugh about it.
The way people tend to associate humour with intellect says a lot, too. Like so many people even just on reddit (and outside of it) quote George Carlin or other comedians as if simply quoting them makes them smart. Do they think that's how that works, or?? lol.
It’s not like it’s a bad thing. I do it too tbh. I think everyone does. But it kind of feels like "people laughing in the face of tragedy" could be considered one of the constants of life behind death and taxes, right? Is it possible that humour is the meaning of life, in absence of anything else that makes people actually care about shit?
Now I'm expecting this comment thread to be full of jokes too lmao.

PC

Reddit Account: u/TheSacredGroves
Discord Tag: justinkayce
Name and House: Roland, of House Arryn
Age: 28
Cultural Group: Andal
Appearance: Tall, lean, well-muscled, handsome, fair - Roland is the portrait of a Knight of legend, of the Winged Knight come again. Harsh sky-blue eyes, severe cheekbones, and the familial aquitaine nose give him a cold and distant look - but one frequently broken by his warm and gentle smile. He keeps his pale-blonde hair long and his jaw clean shaven, accentuating the lines of his face. Roland is always neat and clean, his armour burnished and his threads well-tailored and fashionable.
Trait: Blademaster
Skill(s): Swords (e), Andal Knight (e), Essosi Blademaster
Talent(s): Dancing, Hawking, Singing
Negative Trait(s): -
Starting Title(s): Knight of the Gate
Starting Location: King's Landing
Alternate Characters: n/a

Bio-Timeline

• 3 BC: Roland Arryn is born to King Joffrey I Arryn and his wife, Queen Sharra. The third son, Roland's birth firmly secures the succession - fortunately timed considering his father's death later that year.
• 1 BC: The Conquest passes the two year old Roland by, the only impact on him being the squall he raised when Vhagar landed atop the Eyrie.
• 1-4 AC: The post-conquest world is the only one Roland knows, and he grows up in a household dedicated much to it. House Arryn in this period is an odd family, to say the least. Sharra Arryn's attentions are much divided and she has less time than a mother normally would for her third son; Roland is mostly raised by the medley of the Arryn Household and Court and is well-moulded by that as the expectations of maester, septon, courtiers, knights, servants, begin to be shape him into what an Arryn 'should' be in the eyes of their people.
• 5 AC: Roland struggles to find his place as a third son with little direct supervision. It is decided early that he does not have the smarts to become Septon nor Maester... but even as a youth Roland has a keen interest in the training yard, often an annoying shadow to his eldest brother and his squire friends. However, even at eight years old it is clear there is a natural talent to the boy - and when he defeats a squire four years older than him in a training bout in the presence of Lord Corbray, the famed Raven Knight, takes the precocious boy on as a page.
• 6 AC: Roland is by Lord Corbray's side when he tracks down the Root Father. Now a newly minted squire, Roland ignores his knight's orders to remain with the horses and sneaks after them. He kills his first man there, taking a clansman from behind as he in turn tried to attack the Raven Knight from the back. It is not an honourable kill or a clean death, and Roland is badly injured in the scuffle - but he survives. Lord Corbray is furious, and fiercely instils in Roland the importance of fighting with chivalry and honour. He almost abandons Roland, but his tearful begging convinces the Raven Knight that Roland is genuine in his regret.
• 7 AC: Visenya Targaryen's visits to the Eyrie become more frequent, and Roland's wariness of the stern, dragon-riding pagan is overcome by his fascination with said dragon, her skill with the blade... and his mother's growing closeness to the Queen. Visenya becomes something of a second mother to Roland, and her influences war with Lord Corbray's own. From Lord Corbray, Roland learns chivalry, honour, piety, and how a true Andal Knight should act. From Queen Visenya, Roland learns the importance of victory, and an understanding that wars must be won - he learns practicalities and realities. It is a schism within Roland that troubles him, but from both he learns the blade and even at ten it is more and more obvious there is something special about Roland. He quarrels sometimes with his brothers. Jonos, as even at ten, Roland could find little but disdain for his scheming, sneering, brother, and Ronnel as again even at ten, Roland already began to see himself as the better sword (and grows envious that Ronnel gets to adventure and party while Lord Corbray keeps Roland on a much tighter leash).
• 10 AC: Roland learns of his mother's death while at Heart's Home. He returns home swiftly, and his grief is overwhelming. There are few Roland can turn to; Ronnel is concerned with his marriage and rulership, Arwen retreats into the forests, and Jonos is Jonos. Roland relies further on Visenya, who has experienced such grief herself recently and guides Roland through it. Her place as a mother to Roland is confirmed in utterance. To distract himself, Roland throws himself fully into his training and an ensuing victory at a squire's melee at the age of ten and three sparks his reputation as a squire to watch across the Vale.
• 12 AC: Roland, at ten and five, wins the squire's tourney at Maiden’s Bay. He is stopped from sneaking into the higher tourneys by Lord Corbray, much to Roland's chargrin and his demand to be knighted is refused. His calamitously sized ego is rapidly deflated by the Eyrie's Septon and Queen Visenya, who pick him apart and teach him between them the values of humility, and the value of letting ones abilities speak for themselves. Roland does his best to control his pride in the future; ego is rarely ever an issue from him.
• 13 AC: While the honour of the day goes to the Cavaliers, Roland Arryn wins his spurs when the Painted Dogs are crushed under the Moon Gate, killing near as much as the Cavalier Superior herself. That his knighthood was overshadowed by an order of women warriors initially irritated Roland, but recalling his lessons from the last year, he happily shared the honour alongside them and was one of the voices that petitioned his brother to replace the Keeper with the Cavaliers. Knighted, Roland joins the Brotherhood of the Winged Knights and although young, is a key figure in helping rejuvenate the Brotherhood.
• 14 AC: Roland is betrothed to Alayne Waynwood; their romance is one from the storybooks, an instant and deep connection from the moment of meeting.
• 15 AC: Roland and Alayne wed as soon as they turn ten and eight. Part in celebration and part as dignitaries, the pair go to King's Landing together as guests of Lord Orys' great hunt for his son's coming of age. At the Kingswood Catastrophe, Roland saves Orys' life, but Alayne is slain defending other noblewomen. Roland hunts down, duels, and kills the King of the Wood afterwards. He is offered the Whitecloak for his service; on advice from Visenya, he declines, claiming his family needs him and he can defend Laenor and Visenya just as well in the Vale.
• 16 AC: Roland withdraws into mourning for a year, taking up a brutal campaign of bandit hunting in the Vale to cope with his grief.
• 17-18 AC: Roland returns to his brother's side, continuing to help rebuild the Brotherhood of the Winged Knights and slowly coming to terms with Alayne's death. He begins to more keenly ride the tourney track between his duties, earning a reputation as a fine lance alongside his growing reputation as one of the greatest knights in the realm.
• 19 AC: With Roland settling into his knightly role, Ronnel names him Knight of the Gate, with the downside of forcing Roland to have to keep a firm hand on Jonos from time to time when their brother is exiled to the Gate for yet another slight. The relationship between Jonos and Roland sours; where Ronnel threatens Jonos with exile or the Wall, Roland threatens him with death.
• 20 AC: Requested personally by Visenya, Roland tries to take on Prince Laenor as a squire. They are utterly ill-suited to the role, and after many frustrating failed training sessions in the yard, Roland gives up, labelling the Prince untrainable. The relationship between the two almost-siblings sours, but Roland works to repair the rift he created between them with much kinder words.
• 21 AC: Roland develops a relationship with a fellow Knight of the Vale, Colmar Corbray - the son and heir of the aging Raven Knight. Colmar has a fire in him that Roland can't help but seek, and he excuses Colmar's many flaws far too readily. It is a secretive bond, and toxic, but Roland does not believe he deserves better after letting Alayne die.
• 22 AC: The Winged Knights are whipped into fervour as yet another piece of the ancient armour is found. Roland himself dreams of perhaps finding more. Inspired my tales of the armour, the Brotherhood grows even further and in order to keep a firm hand on them, Ronnel makes Roland their Commander.
• 23 AC: Roland and Colmar's relationship deteriorates, ending in a duel that sees Colmar humiliated but, thankfully, alive. The two men hate each other from then on.
• 25 AC: Roland rides by his brother's side to King's Landing.

Family Tree

AC

Name and House: Marla of Gulltown
Age: 34
Cultural Group: Andal
Appearance: Broad and strong with well-calloused hands, Marla is as obvious a blacksmith as Roland is a knight. She keeps her brown hair tied severely back, framing her dour face with its squinting brown and wide mouth that wears an almost perpetual frown.
Trait: Artisan (Weapons)
Skill(s): Craftsman (e weapons; e armor)
Talent(s): Whittling, singing, maintenance of arms and armour
Negative Trait(s): -
Starting Title(s): King's Landing
Starting Location: Master of the Armoury of the Bloody Gate

Timeline

• 9 BC: Marla of Gulltown is born to a master-armourer in Gulltown
• 1 BC: Marla begs her father to help as his assistant as he tries to deal with the massive increase in orders thanks to the Conquest; he reluctantly agrees. Her older brother dies when Vhagar burns the Vale's fleet.
• 2 AC: Marla secretly goes out to work her father's forge at night, practicing at smithing - and finding herself something of a prodigy.
• 6 AC: Her father dies of a weak heart. Marla and her mother discover his great gambling debts, and no money saved for them. They keep her father's death a secret as Marla works the forge to complete his current orders - what comes after that, no one knows.
• 7 AC: Somehow, the charade is kept up. Marla's father is portrayed as a recluse who has devoted himself to his work and the Smith and will see no one in person. This mystery increases the shop's popularity, and many marvel at how greatly his work has improved since taking up this holy vow of solitude.
• 10 AC: A young merchant attempts to woo Marla and is rebuffed. Spying on her, he discovers her secret, and spreads it through Gulltown. The reputation of the shop collapses, and Marla and her mother flee ahead of those furious at the deception, the Faith angry that they had been used, and the law's punishment for fraud. They flee to Pentos.
• 11 AC: Marla finds work with a Qohorik blacksmith, an old master, now drunk and washed up. He teaches her all he knows. Helping each other back to their feet, the pair set up a proper shop, once more, together.
• 15 AC: The old blacksmith dies; Pentos proves to be unfriendly in its business to a woman by herself without the old master by her side. Despairing, Marla hears about the Cavaliers of the Vale, and reckons that if her home will now accept female knights, surely they'll accept a female blacksmith.
• 16 AC: Marla returns to the Vale with her mother. She avoids Gulltown and instead heads to the Gates of the Moon, seeking to offer her services to the Cavaliers. She is accosted by vengeful Painted Dogs on the way, and saved by the miraculous intervention of Roland. He offers to accompany her to the Gates of the Moon, where Marla is gladly accepted.
• 17 AC: Having forged arms and armour for Roland as well, which Roland raves over, Roland has his brother take her on as the Arryn's personal smith and armourer.
• 19 AC: When Roland is given the Bloody Gate, he begs Marla to come with him, who agrees in part. The smith spends her time between the two Gates and the Eyrie, overseeing the arms and armours of all the Arryn forces. Mostly remaining at the Bloody Gate, Marla becomes an integral part of the Winged Knights.
• 20-24 AC: Marla is regularly persuaded to accompany Roland to yet another tourney to help maintain his arms and armour. She grumbles, but secretly enjoys the competitions. Tales of the Winged Knights armour fascinate the Blacksmith, and with her small amount of Qohorik experience she helps verify the pieces as true Valyrian Steel. Her and Roland worsen each others obsession with tracking down the rest.
• 25 AC: Marla rides to King's Landing with her Lord and Knight, ready to work her magic if Roland breaks his armour yet again.

Supporting Characters

• Septon Gernot, 41 (Medic) - Septon of the Gate
• Maester Guy, 42 (Scholar) - Maester of the Gate
• Ser Martin Donnerly, 36 (General) - Castellan of the Gate

First / Previous / Next
Before anyone could say anything else, there was a blinding flash of white light. The Dreadnought appeared directly in front of them, impeding their progress. Stormy fired the thrusters and tried to duck underneath.
"Get back into your seats! I'm going to link away again." Northern and Zhe dove towards their seats and bucked back up, but before Stormy could link, there was a clatter and a shudder throughout the ship. New alarms sounded throughout the ship, a kind of wailing trilling noise. It was incredibly loud.
"What's that Stormy?" Zhe clapped her hands over her large ears. "Can you turn it down any?"
"It's... It's a grapple. We've been grappled!" Stormy's rage permeated her voice. "Those were banned centuries ago! I can't believe they used a grapple on us."
"Can we do anything?" Fen asked. She looked down at her screen. There were new spots of orange on the readout where the grapple was damaging the hull.
"Our options at this point are to allow us to be taken aboard, or blow the reactor." Northern shook her head. "They've got us."
"Stormy, might as well disconnect and come up here. I don't want them doing anything to you." Fen closed her pad with a snap. She looked at Zhe and Northern. "Sorry."
Zhe shook her head. "Nothing to be sorry about, Fen. We're in this together."
Northern nodded. "Despite myself, I do find that I like you two. I wouldn't be here if I didn't. It's not your fault Fen."
Fen sighed. "Yeah, but if I wasn't a clone of the first Empress..."
"There's no way these people know that Fen. They're just after their current Empress and probably think we know something about it. I'd say just answer their questions mostly honestly." Northern ticked off points on her long fingers. "We saw her on Picaresque, we went out drinking, we partied with her and her honor guard, and in the morning we left. None off that is a lie."
Stormy walked into the Command Deck and looked around. Finding a seat, she sat down and buckled in. "The four of us is enough to operate a frigate of this size without raising too much suspicion. They shouldn't ask about whether we have an AI pilot."
Zhe's ears flicked in surprise. "Really? Only four people?"
She nodded. "It's just about the bare minimum, but it's possible. It could be explained away that we're a new merc group and haven't taken on more crew yet. These kind of ships are meant to be run lean and mean anyway."
Fen wasn't so sure, but she couldn't do anything else.
They waited.
About 30 minutes later, there was a pounding on the airlock. Fen unbuckled and went to the lock. Peering through the window she saw three armored spacesuits. She toggled the intercom. "Yes?"
"Human Imperial Navy. Open up please. We have some questions for you."
Please? That was interesting. "Why did you grapple me? You could have used your radio."
"The Admiral wishes to speak to you in person."
They did not elaborate further.
The voice of the suited person sighed. "Look. If you just open the doors, it'll go better for you. We won't even restrain you. You just open up, we bring you to the Admiral and then we let you go once she's happy with the answers."
"And if I don't open the lock?"
"Then we force it open, capture you, restrain you-" They hold up some metal zip cuffs. "-and still bring you to the Admiral. Only now, your ship is damaged and you can't leave once she's finished speaking. Your choice."
Fen cut the intercom. "Fuck." she said to nobody, and pressed the purge button. Both airlock door snapped open and there was a puff of air as the pressures equalized. Fen's ears were pained for a moment, but she swallowed and her ears popped.
The guard lifted their helmet. It was two men and a woman who looked so similar they could have been related. The woman smiled. "Thank you, really. My name is Lieutenant Shelly Cooper. What's yours?"
"I'm Captain Fenchurch Whitehorse, but please call me Fen."
"Very well, Fen. Who else is aboard?"
"The rest of my crew. They're on the Command Deck. There are four of us."
That caused Lieutenant Cooper to raise an eyebrow, "Four? That's it?"
Fen smiled awkwardly. "I wasn't able to hire anymore crew than that. Believe me when I say I've been trying." It wasn't a lie, not really. Fen found that there weren't many people who were willing to sign on to an unproven merc company, even if they were a couple years old.
The Lieutenant turned to one of the men behind her. "What did the bioscan say?"
He looked down at a pad strapped to the arm of his suit and tapped at it with a gloved hand. "She's not lying. Ship is empty except for the command deck."
"Curious." Cooper stared hard at Fen. "Have we met? Are you from Sol? You seem familiar to me."
"I don't see how. I grew up in a Gren station, far outside of Colonial space." Again, it wasn't a lie, but it wasn't the whole truth. Of course people in the military would know what the first Empress looked like.
"Hmm. Okay. If your crew agrees to keep the reactor powered down and be powered by an umbilical, they can stay confined to the ship and you accompany us. Deal?"
"Yes, I agree to those terms. Let me go tell my crew."
Lieutenant Cooper nods. "You have three minutes."
Fen hurries back to the command deck. "The Admiral wants to talk to me. They said you can stay here so long as you agree to be powered only by their umbilical."
Zhe stood up and crossed her arms, her tail swishing irritatedly. "It won't matter, because we're coming too."
Northern looked to Zhe and sighed, but only a little. "We can't leave you out to dry, Fen. We'll come along too. How bad can it be? Plus, if we come with you we can't suffer "an unfortunate accident" in the hangar."
Fen exhaled. She hadn't realized she was holding her breath in. "Thanks Northern, Zhe." She turned to Stormy. "You're welcome to come along, but I also know this isn't your thing. We had just hired you after all."
Stormy looked at Northern who shrugged with her eyes. "Up to you."
She runs her hands over her face. "Fuck, me. I swear Northern, you know how to pick them." Stormy stands up and smiles. "I'll come along, what the hell. Sitting on the ship was going to be boring by myself anyway."
The four of them went to the airlock, and Fen went up to Lieutenant Cooper "I spoke to my crew, and they want to accompany me."
Lieutenant Cooper throws up her hands. "Fine, I guess we'll just give you the VIP tour on the way." She gestures out towards the hangar. "Here is the hangar, where we store our smaller ships and boats, as well as the frigate of a merc captain we captured that the admiral wants to speak to and offered to let her crew stay onboard but they want to follow their captain to the ends of the galaxy."
Fen crossed her arms, but said nothing.
"Come on then. We'll find you some more chairs or something." Lieutenant Cooper turned on her heel and walked out of the hangar, without waiting for them to follow. The two guards with her looked at each other and one of them gestured for them to follow.
Not too far from the hangar, Lieutenant Cooper came upon a small conference room. She opened the door and led them inside. As they sat, a steward came by with a small cart of drinks. Fen was offered and accepted a coffee, and they went around offering beverages. Lieutenant Cooper also took a coffee, but everyone else abstained.
Cooper took a sip and looked down at the comm on her wrist. "The Admiral will be here shortly. Please be respectful. She's... lived a long life and doesn't suffer fools. If you want to make it back to your ship, answer her questions quickly and honestly."
Fen wasn't halfway through her coffee with the door chimed. Lieutenant Cooper stood. "This is where I leave you. The guards will wait outside the door and - should you be able - will escort you back to your ship." Her face was odd. She looked worried, and also like she felt bad for them. Just what kind of person was this Admiral?"
The door whooshed open and the Admiral strode in. She was about the same height as Cooper, maybe a few centimeters taller than Fen. Her hair was blond streaked with grey and she wore it clipped very short on the back and sides and a little longer in the front. She wore her hat at an angle that probably was against regulations. Her uniform was immaculate and her chest bulged with medals. She had a hard, but not unattractive face, lined with time. As she entered, she looked down at everyone sitting, and as she passed over them she stopped at Fen, and her breath caught.
"You are dismissed, Lieutenant."
Cooper saluted sharply. "Yes, Admiral."
"Dismiss the guards as well. I will not need them."
"Admiral? With all due respect-"
The Admiral turned to face Cooper and stared at her. Without saying anything at all, Fen could feel her shouting at the Lieutenant. Her gaze was withering. Cooper swallowed and saluted again. "Yes, Admiral."
The door closed behind her and the Admiral's demeanor immediately changed. She shrank down a little, looked older, less hard. She strode around the room and glanced down at the carafe of coffee. She poured herself a cup and sat at the head of the table. While everyone watched, rapt. She took a sip and placed it down on the table without a clink. She looked at Fen.
"You look like her, you know? I can see that you're different. A product of your upbringing. It's your eyes, and the way you carry yourself. I can see so much of her though. It's a little spooky."
Fen blinked. Whatever she expected, it wasn't this. "You know I'm a clone of the first Empress?"
The admiral laughed. Her voice was surprisingly musical. "Fen, I knew Melody. I was friends with her. I... I was on a different ship when she was killed. I became Empress after her."
Stormy gasped. "No. No way. She retired to Venus, and let her daughter reign. She would be over five hundred years old. You're not her."
The admiral smirked. "If you know all that, then you know that the Nanites can extend life. I can't do the Voice anymore, and it's been more than two centuries since I carried a crown and wings, but I am still me.
Northern turned and stared at Stormy. "Who is it, Stormy?"
The admiral spread her hands wide. "I am Empress Helen Raaden, First of Her Name, Ruler of Sol - Retired."

This is a story I heard from my dad that his sister told him, I’d always heard it from him, but recently decided to get the story directly from her. Here’s a copy/paste of her description of events, all I’ve changed are the names of the people involved.
“This happened in the summer of 1991. (Boyfriend) and I helped one of his friends move to Moonstone, and (Boyfriend) had the big U-haul truck, we had stopped at Wasaga Beach and we were about to get locked in because the gates closed at dusk. So we were driving down the 400 towards Toronto, and the truck died, it was near the Aurora sideroad or exit. (I remember because it was the first time I'd ever heard of Aurora) (boyfriend) didn't give a crap about the truck so we just left it there and started walking, not hitchhiking. And you remember (boyfriend) had the long blond hair, he was mistaken for a woman many times, this gold car pulled over. It was dark by this time. The guy got out and asked where we were going, and said you'll have to sit in the back seat, he had a bunch of milk crates with papers on the front seat. It was a 2 door car so it's not so easy to get out of the back seat. I will swear on a bible that I seen a gun in his hand when I was getting in the backseat, (boyfriend) made him move his crates to the backseat and sat up front. I don't remember if he hold us his name but he started talking about his work and he said he was an accountant for Beckers and he lived in Scarborough. He did miss our exit on the highway, and (boyfriend) asked him what he was doing, none to politely. I don't know where he ended up dropping us off. He was kind of odd. I remember telling my Mom how scared I was when I saw the gun, (boyfriend) says he didn't see it.
When Paul Bernardo was arrested he had the same gold car, and was an accountant for Beckers. I have thought of writing him and asking him about it but never have.”
For those unaware, Paul Bernardo is probably the most famous serial killer in Canadian history. He was known as the Scarborough Rapist, The Schoolgirl Killer, and as “Ken” of the Ken and Barbie Killers.
I’ve done a little research, and Bernardo did drive a 2 door gold Nissan 240SX. He was an accountant, but I can’t find anything about him working for “Beckers”, although since he did freelance work he might have at some point, or just gave a different company name because he didn’t want to give out too much information. Found no record of him owning a gun, but it’s fairly possible he used a fake one to intimidate people.
Overall, I’d say a guy who looked just like Bernardo, drove the same kind of car, in the same uncommon colour, with the same career, in the same area as the killer, that’s quite a few coincidences… so, thought it was interesting enough to share. :)